Tighter field prepares for next round

Edwards, Clark vie to slow Kerry's momentum

WilliamL. Watts

WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) -- Sen. John Edwards and Wesley Clark are vying to become the second man in what they hope will become a two-man race with Sen. John Kerry, the frontrunner in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Kerry cemented his hold on frontrunner status in Tuesday night's multi-state primaries, notching convincing wins in Arizona, Missouri, New Mexico and Delaware. Edwards kept his campaign alive with a strong victory in South Carolina, while Clark, a retired Army general, edged Edwards in Oklahoma for his first win of the campaign.

Edwards, speaking to reporters in Memphis, said he was the natural alternative to Kerry.

"This is a very fluid race. It looks like it's narrowed down to two, or maybe three, candidates. And I think if it's two, it's myself and Senator Kerry. I'll let General Clark argue for whether he should be No. 3," Edwards said.

Edwards and Clark are both focusing hard on next Tuesday's primaries in Tennessee and Virginia.

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who was the frontrunner heading into the Iowa caucuses, is still in the race, but hasn't won a contest yet.

Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee in 2000, dropped out Tuesday night after failing to win a single state in the 2004 race for the nomination to oppose President Bush.

Clark kicked off the next leg of his campaign with a bus tour of Tennessee, which originated in Jackson Wednesday morning. Without mentioning other candidates by name, Clark appeared to contrast his long military career with Kerry's and Edwards' congressional tenures.

"I'm part of the solution, not part of the problem. I spent my life in the military, acting and doing - not in the halls of Congress, talking and debating. I call it like I see it and let the chips fall where they may," Clark said.

Meanwhile, Kerry returned to his home state of Massachusetts for a one-day campaign break. It wasn't all rest, however. The senator picked up an endorsement from the 1.3 million member American Federation of Teachers at a Boston rally.

Kerry continued to emphasize that he was the only candidate running a "national campaign," with plans in coming days to visit all five states holding contests this weekend and next Tuesday.

"We're not playing cautious here, we're playing to win this race," Kerry said.

Rebutting doubts about his ability to win outside the Northeast, Kerry won five states, finished second to Edwards in South Carolina and came in a close third behind Clark and Edwards in Oklahoma.

University of Virginia political scientist Larry Sabato said Tuesday night's results made Kerry the "substantial frontrunner" and the likely nominee barring any major gaffes or other stumbles.

However, Edwards' solid win in South Carolina and strong second-place finish in Oklahoma give the North Carolina senator solid "runner-up" status, Sabato said, but warned that Clark could stand in the way of Edwards' efforts to make himself the sole rival to the frontrunner.

"In Virginia and Tennessee, for example, Clark is disproportionately drawing votes from Edwards, making it much more difficult for Edwards to defeat Kerry in either state. Edwards must win either [Virginia or Tennessee or both] on Feb. 10, since they are neighboring states of his own [North Carolina]," Sabato wrote in an election analysis note. "Thus, Kerry has an interest in seeing Clark stay in the nomination battle, just as Edwards needs urgently for Clark to leave."

Tuesday night's unofficial returns gave Kerry a total of 254 delegates; Dean, 148; Edwards, 110; and Clark 95, according to CBS News.

The closest race was in Oklahoma, where Clark beat Edwards by a mere 1,206 votes, 90,504 to 89,298. Some media reports attributed Edwards' last-minute surge to his endorsement by former Oklahoma University and Dallas Cowboys football coach Barry Switzer, one of the most popular and influential men in the state.

Dean has said his strategy is to collect delegates, not wins, and focus on key upcoming races.

Unofficial results by state:

State

Candidate

Percentage of vote

Arizona

Kerry

43

Clark

27

Dean

14

Delaware

Kerry

50

Lieberman

11

Edwards

11

Missouri

Kerry

51

Edwards

25

Dean

9

New Mexico

Kerry

42

Clark

21

Dean

17

North Dakota

Kerry

50

Clark

24

Dean

12

Oklahoma

Clark

30

Edwards

30

Kerry

27

South Carolina

Edwards

45

Kerry

30

Sharpton

10

As in Iowa and New Hampshire, CBS News exit polls showed the economy remains the top concern of Democratic voters. About a third of voters in Missouri, Oklahoma, Delaware and Arizona rated the state of the economy and the job situation the top issue in the election. In South Carolina, 46 percent rated it the top issue.

Three-quarters or more of voters in each state dub the economy "not good" or "poor" and many have felt the effects in their own pocketbooks, saying they are financially worse off today than they were four years ago.

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